Don't leave town before you've seen the booming ICT market
Confidence is up for both employers and job seekers in the ICT sector with a rise in new projects upholding recruitment activity and promising pay increases in 2014.
A whopping 75 percent of employers are planning to hire new staff in 2014, the majority within the next 3 months and the main reason being new projects, according to the latest Absolute IT Employer Insight Survey.
“Nearly 40 percent of hiring intentions are the result of new projects, followed closely by increased customer demand and increased demand of IT from the business, all reflecting the boost in industry confidence we’re seeing as the economy improves,” says Grant Burley, director, Absolute IT.
Consistent with previous years, the Absolute IT Job Seeker Intentions Survey shows 67 percent of workers are planning to look for new work in 2014, the main reason being that it’s ‘time for a change,’ a positive shift from ‘low salary’ & ‘skills not being utilised‘ in 2013.
“And the work’s out there,” Burley says. “We’re going to see a recruitment push for over 1,750 vacancies from these 400 employer survey respondents alone within the next 12 months, with high levels of permanent recruitment activity, in the private sector and public sectors.
"This not only underpins growing employer confidence, but also indicates a move to a more settled workforce.”
Growth in confidence is strongest in the smaller regions, with Christchurch leading the way with 86 percent of employers planning to hire in 2014; up from 56 percent in 2013. Waikato/ BOP follow closely on 81 percent up from 63 percent in 2013, while 75 percent of Auckland employers and 73 percent of Wellington’s are intending to hire.
And, employers’ efforts to retain and attract the best talent are really paying off with 85 percent of job seekers happy with their workplace, citing flexible working hours as the top non-financial benefit an employer can offer.
“Things are also positive on the remuneration front,” Burley adds.
“We’re seeing 47.5 percent of employers saying they’re going to provide a pay rise in 2014, up from 44 percent in 2013 and only 6 percent ruling it out, a 66 percent decrease from our 2013 survey.”
The employer survey shows that while only 44 percent of employers were planning to give a pay rise in 2013, 75 percent actually did. If this trend continues then the 47.5 percent of employers anticipating giving one in 2014 could in fact be closer to 81 percent.
Once again the smaller regions have come out on top with Christchurch and Waikato/BOP giving the most pay increases last year at 86 percent and 96 percent respectively, ahead of Wellington’s 66 percent and Auckland’s 76 percent.
Looking forward, more Christchurch and Waikato employers are planning to give pay increases in 2014 at 68 percent and 65 percent respectively alongside 40 percent of Wellington and 49 percent of Auckland employers.
“It’s a sign of the improving economy that remuneration confidence is increasing strongly in the smaller regions however the big cities still hold the top median remuneration and are offering increasingly more benefits and bonuses," Burley adds.
“Competitive remuneration is crucial to helping retain talent. As our data consistently shows, money is one of the main reasons talent move jobs and look overseas.
"This is confirmed by the latest stats which show a consistent 34 percent of job seekers are planning to move offshore this year looking for money and career development.”
Fewer employers are using social media and websites to promote their employer brands, down from 56 percent in January 2013 to 51 percent this year – an interesting move considering more job seekers are using social media/websites to evaluate potential employers, up to 79 percent from 77 percent in 2013.
“Interestingly the job seeker’s use of social media has shifted to a source of more general information than a way to apply for jobs direct," Burley adds.
"Nevertheless it remains a valuable way for employers to encourage likeminded talent to their business."
